Tag Archive for: adventure

Fable by Adrienne Young

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This book is for any reader that has pretended to be a diver, diving deep into the ocean on the search for treasure, while in actuality diving in a swimming pool. Or for any reader that has pondered how enticing it would be, really, to say no thank you to current life and become a pirate, instead. If you’d rather not get water up your nose or say goodbye to stable income, Fable by Adrienne Young can provide similar high seas adventures from the comfort of your reading chair. Throw in a really cool protagonist, some slow burn romance, seafaring politics with a little bit of mystery, a ship crew that might have you thinking “squad goals”, and some child abandonment, and you have a favorite young adult novel of mine. The first in a nautical fantasy duology, Fable follows seventeen-year-old main character Fable as she navigates the unforgiving world of the Narrows, a collection of islands in the Unnamed Sea, after life has dealt her an unfair hand. 

Fable, at first introduction, seems unshakable. She lives a hard life on the port island of Jeval, known for its thieves and lack of resources, where she survives alone as the most skilled dredger on the island; in other words, she makes dives into the ocean in search of gems and anything else of value lodged in the coral surrounding the island. Unlike other dredgers, Fable has a secret she keeps: the gems sing to her. She can identify every gem she comes across, and can sense them when they are nearby, a dangerous ability in a world propelled by greed and survival. Fable learned these skills from her mother, who taught her the ways of being a gem sage. 

It doesn’t take long to learn that being unshakable is surface level; Fable is in survival mode. Fable grew up on the seas with her mother and father, Saint, on Saint’s ship until one night when Fable was thirteen the ship tragically sank, taking the life of her mother with it. Instead of doing, you know, something normal like caring for his grieving daughter, Saint instead abandons Fable on Jeval the following day with nothing to her name and no promise of return, telling Fable that if she gets herself off the island, he will give her everything she is due as his heir. That was four years ago. Now, Fable dredges to survive, selling what she dredges to the same trader that always comes to port, West, until she has enough coin to get off the island. 

Fable’s environment on the island becomes increasingly dangerous, eventually forcing her to barter for passage on West’s ship. Thus ensues seafaring adventures as Fable aims to complete her only goal: make it back to Saint and claim what is hers. Yet Fable must be careful, as her father isn’t just anyone, but the most successful trader in the Narrows with a large trading business, and should anyone discover who she is to him, it means certain death. And of course, the trip back to him is not easy, danger lurking at every turn. West’s crew is a tight knit, small group with secrets of their own, and Fable knows she shouldn’t trust them. But the more time they spend together, the more Fable thinks they might be what she truly needs: a family and people to call her own. Fable is smart and has clearly grown up learning how to navigate the harsh reality the dangerous world of the Narrows presents, and with everything seeming to work against her, can she persevere to find ultimate happiness and security? 

This is a book I’ve reread several times and always enjoy. While there are plot points that don’t truly make sense to me (like, what father dumps his pretty teenage daughter on a dangerous island because he is “scared for her safety”, and how, exactly does a crew of teenagers seem to defeat every obstacle a very hard world throws at them) I nonetheless find myself loving this book. It’s an easy, accessible read, with enough plot turns and excitement to keep me hooked. The descriptions, especially the underwater scenes, are beautiful. Adrienne Young brings the setting of the Narrows to life, which I always picture to be something like Pirates of the Caribbean. Fable is an easy book to dive into and devour, the combination of the plot, setting, and characters never disappoints me, and I enjoy it every time I pick it up and sail the Unnamed Sea. 

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Review by Sarah Turner-Hill, Adult Programming Coordinator

Bicycling with Butterflies by Sara Dykman

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Full disclosure: I chose to review this book because author Sara Dykman is visiting the library. Better yet, you’re invited! Join us at the library on Tuesday, September 27th for Dykman’s presentation about her new book, Bicycling with Butterflies, which, plainly stated, recounts “[her] 10,201-mile journey following the monarch migration.”

Seriously, she rode 10,000+ miles on a bicycle from Mexico to Canada and back to travel with the beautiful, threatened monarchs. Further interesting is that she’s headed back to Mexico, though on motorcycle this time, stopping here in Joplin (among other places) along the way, to again follow the monarch butterflies to Canada and back.

Sara Dykman works in amphibian research, is an outdoor educator, and, as a handful of her trips illustrate, an adventurer. She’s walked from Mexico to Canada, canoed the Missouri River from source to sea, and cycled over 80,000 miles across North and South America. She founded beyondabook.org, “an adventure-linked education project that connects real-time adventures to classrooms [that creates] opportunities for real-life learning [that] inspires students to push their limits and explore the planet.” Through her adventures and projects, Dykman hopes “to empower young and old to dream big.”

Dykman begins by sharing how her idea of cycling the monarch migration came about. Like most ideas, it started as a seed that sprouted into something much larger and full of life. A simple desire to visit the butterflies at their overwintering grounds (in Mexico) morphed into a full-fledged plan to accompany them on their migration, via bicycle. But she didn’t just hop on a bike and go. She spent a year planning, researching, and otherwise preparing for the adventure. As she wrote in the first pages of her book, “Eventually, there was nothing left to do but start.” And start she did.

Like the monarchs, Dykman’s journey began and ended in El Rosario, Mexico. She arrived there in January 2017, though she (and the butterflies) did not head north until March. A wonderful map illustrates the basics of their route. March, April, and May took them up north through Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota. June carried them farther north, then eastward across Michigan and Canada, reentering the United States on the east coast in July. Late July through August took them westward then south, crossing New York, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, then down into Kentucky. September swept them westward across Illinois and Missouri, then started them on their homestretch south. October and November took them farther south, through Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Mexico, back to their starting point in El Rosario.

Dykman’s upcoming visit will not be her first stop in Joplin. She stopped here, as did some of the monarch butterflies, in October 2017, on her way back south to the starting point. She pedaled into Joplin under cover of night and stayed over at local master naturalist Val Frankoski’s house. Like Dykman, Val cares deeply for the monarchs and has worked tirelessly, alongside others in our community, to plant milkweed and otherwise provide a habitat for and raise awareness about the monarchs and their migration, as well as their importance. This work, along with Dykman’s visit, culminated in a mayoral pledge, which declared April through October 2017 as the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge Days in Joplin (http://joplinmo.org/1001/Mayors-Monarch-Pledge).

While here, Dykman presented to 1,000 enthusiastic school children, as she describes in her book: “Val saw me hopeful, telling kids about the joy of monarchs, adventure, and science, and how everyone can be a part of the solution.” After Joplin, Dykman pedaled off to nearby Neosho, Missouri, before heading farther south. She wrote that she “left Joplin just as [she] had arrived, in the cover of night.”

Now, about the book’s arrangement and layout (which is one of my favorite things to include in reviews, as I think it’s important, particularly in nonfiction). As one might expect, this book is organized chronologically, recounting Dykman’s journey starting in January 2017 through November of that same year. Each chapter begins with the number of days it is during the migration, as well as the dates and the miles covered. For example: Days 142-153 / July 31-August 11, Miles 5518-6005. For this particular stretch, that’s about 40 miles a day, which, to my surprise, takes cyclists about 4 hours to complete (according to Google, that is). Still, that’s a lot of mileage, especially day after day after day.

Bicycling with Butterflies is as much a 10,000+ mile memoir as it is an account of the monarchs’ migration. In addition to recounting the actions and observations of, as well as her interactions with, the butterflies, Dykman describes her exchanges with those she meets along the way, some more positive and inspiring than others. I like that she doesn’t hold back, that she doesn’t weed out the less-than positive aspects of the narrative. Moreover, I appreciate her social commentary.

I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in adventure stories, the environment (specifically, saving it), the monarch butterflies, and memoir. A word on Dykman’s writing: excellent. She has a keen eye for drawing parallels between us and the world in which we live. If you’re not able to join us for her upcoming author visit, then I encourage you to check out her book–literally!

As always, happy reading.

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Six Mystery/Thrillers that Take You Places

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My reading over the last few weeks has taken me to a lot of different locations. I spent some quality time in Colorado before a brief stop in Washington, DC led me to Texas. Then I made a mad dash through Peru, Costa Rica and the Caribbean. My next stop was North Carolina before a stay in Sydney, Australia.

In some places I caught up with familiar characters, in others I got to know ones I’ve met briefly before, and for a few I was able to meet new personas.

Margaret Mizushima took me to Colorado in her Timber Creek K-9 mystery series. This series was recommended to me by a fellow mystery reader who thought I would like it (Thank you, I do!). Mattie Cobb and K-9 partner, Robo, are introduced in Killing Trail. Robo was bought for the sheriff’s department to help with a growing drug problem in Timber Creek. On the pair’s first assignment he proves his skill goes beyond drug detection when he discovers the body of teen. This series has a lot going for it with good character development, a complex heroine with a troubled past, a mountainous setting, and most importantly the relationship between Mattie and Robo and how they work together. I’ll be back in Colorado again soon.

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Lucas Davenport in the Prey series by John Sandford is one of my favorite characters. His adopted daughter, Letty, was introduced in Naked Prey and is mentioned or makes brief appearances in most of the succeeding Prey novels. In The Investigator she takes the lead. The 24-year old Stanford grad is talked out of leaving a boring job by her boss, Senator Colles. His plan is to make her a researcher with her first assignment to work with Homeland Security to find who is stealing oil and for what purpose. Joined by DHS agent John Kaiser they leave DC for a brief stop in Oklahoma before the trial leads them to Texas. This is Sandford at his best as Letty and John piece together clues and follow the oil and the money. With plenty of action and smart dialog this one was hard to put down.

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The Recovery Agent features Gabriela Rose, Janet Evanovich’s new heroine. First introduced in a Stephanie Plum novel, Gabriela has mad skills and uses them to locate items and investigate fraud for insurance companies and private clients. However her current case is for family. Grandma is convinced Gabriela is a descendant of Blackbeard and they possess a map that will take them to the Ring of Solomon. If she can find it, they can save their hurricane ravaged town. The map however is in the home of her ex-husband, Rafer, who insists on being part of the quest. This novel is pure entertainment as the adventure goes from Peru and Costa Rica to the Caribbean then New York City and back to South America. It has a truly creepy bad guy and funny sidekicks. Though divorced there is still a spark between Gabriela and Rafer with plenty of witty banter. If you are an Evanovich fan, you don’t want to miss this one.

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After all that excitement I settled in to catch up with the ladies in the Secret, Book & Scone Society. Nora’s book store in Miracle Springs, NC is the gathering place for the 4 friends-Nora, June, Hester and Estella. In this 5th book in the series, Vanishing Type, three of them are helping Hester’s beau plan a romantic scenario for proposing. But Hester has a secret and before she can share it an unidentified man is found dead with an old book is his pocket. Then a book in the same series shows up in Hester’s bakery and Nora finds another in a box in her storeroom. What is the significance of the series of books? Is Hester in danger? Despite the intrigue I felt like I was catching up with old friends. Their lives are evolving with each new book in the series.

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Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty is a book I checked out because it was recommended to me by a friend. After 20 pages I thought why did she think I’d like this? After a few more I was hooked. The Delaneys of Sydney Australia were a tennis family. Stan and Joy ran a successful academy and all 4 of their children were gifted players. Now they play recreationally or not at all but tennis still seems to dominate their lives. The story is told in the present where Joy is missing and in the past when a young woman, Savannah, shows up at Stan and Joy’s home needing help. In the present the police and even his children believe Stan is responsible for Joy’s disappearance. He feels guilty about something and he’s not talking. In the past, where Savannah seems to take up permanent residence in their home, is where it starts to unravel. The urgency of Joy’s disappearance is dimmed because she is so often seen in the past. But this book is about so much more than the mystery of what happened to Joy. It’s about family, how the past shapes the present and how the smallest things can make all the difference. Hint: keep this book in mind for the Summer Reading Program starting on May 31st. This title will work for one the adult challenges.

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Project Hail Mary by Anthony Weir

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“PROJECT HAIL MARY‘s” main character Ryland Grace is on a mission to save Earth; however, when he wakes up aboard a spacecraft in outer space, he has no idea where he is, much less why he is there. He cannot even remember his own name. Quickly, he manages to figure out that he has been sleeping for a long time and is still alive thanks to being cared for by a highly specialized robotics system.

As he begins to explore the ship, he discovers that he was not always alone. His two roommates did not make it through the voyage, they are mere husks in their sleeping chambers. Also, as he explores, parts of his memory slowly return, but only in bits and pieces. He soon realizes he has been left to deal with a monumental task — figuring out how to save Earth from a parasite species that is killing the sun.

As he gets to work on this problem, he continues to regain some of his memory, but more importantly, he realizes that he might not have to solve this problem alone.

Technically, “Project Hail Mary” is science fiction, but it reads more like an adventure story. Fiction lovers will almost certainly enjoy it. The author does a great job telling the story in alternating scenes from the present-day action to flashbacks. Bit by bit, the history of the main character is revealed — just the right amount per page. Readers will not have a full picture of how or why Ryland Grace ended up in space until toward the end of the novel, but they will know just enough to make them want to keep turning the pages.

This is not author ANDY WEIR‘s first time writing a compelling and believable science fiction story. In fact, he’s the bestselling author who rose to fame in 2014 for penning “The Martian,” which was later turned into a blockbuster movie.

I was so impressed with Weir’s “The Martian” that I thought he might have a hard time creating something just as good. After reading it, I am happy to say that my fears were completely unfounded. His latest offering is just as good as the first, maybe even better. Weir is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

Readers will be left in awe of his grasp of physics, engineering, mechanics and outer space. It is mind blowing how much math and scientific knowledge is packed into this one book. More impressive is his ability to create a story using all these technical elements and still make it interesting for a broad readership.

Weir creates an engaging and compelling plot by including unique and entertaining elements and he has great storytelling timing. He knows how to share a story and build suspense, all while making readers identify and empathize with the characters. Thanks to the excellent character development I periodically find myself thinking about “my friend” Ryland Grace and his quest to save planet Earth. I highly recommend this one.

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